For the inaugural edition of Design Miami/ Paris, Friedman Benda is proud to present a selection of works, celebrating acclaimed European designers and introducing key voices from the United States. This ensemble of forward-thinking design will be unveiled in the historical context of the hotel de Maisons, in the heart of Saint-Germain des Prés.
Since opening its doors in 2007, Friedman Benda identifies and advances key narratives that intersect contemporary design, craft, architecture, visual art, and cutting-edge technological research. The presentation provides a capsule of the gallery’s mission for Design Miami/ Paris visitors.
Highlights include armchairs from Paris-based designer Raphael Navot’s acclaimed “Acrostic” series, with interlocking volumes that explore the nuances of texture, form, palette, and materials. In direct conversation is Faye Toogood’s Plot II from her recent body of work, “Assemblage 7”. Hand-carved in oak – a material that resonates historically – the work venerates the primacy of traditional artisanal carving techniques and marks its debut on the European continent.
Further, two vignettes juxtapose works by Samuel Ross and Daniel Arsham, both polymathic creative forces with global resonance. Anaesthesia II manifests Ross’ conceptual and layered approach to post-industrial materiality, while Jaffe Desk and Philly Lamp represent a significant departure for Arsham’s development of vocabularies of form and making.
Shown for the first time to the European public, seminal Italian designer and architect Andrea Branzi’s newest body of work, “Roots” explores the tension between the commodified and natural, gestural and methodical, artisanal and industrial. This follows research that culminated in Branzi’s exhibition at Centre Pompidou in 2017.
The presentation is completed by the historical A.Y.O.R. (At Your Own Risk) chair by Ron Arad from 1991, a pair of bronze and ceramic sculptural lighting works by Swiss-born artist Carmen D’Apollonio, Misha Kahn’s signature “Rock” series, a 3D-printed Strange Attractor chandelier by Dutch designer Joris Laarman, and glass vases made in 2006 by Ettore Sottsass.
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L’hôtel de Maisons
51 rue de l’Université, 75007 Paris, France
Preview Day: Tuesday, October 17
Members Preview/ 11am – 3pm
Collectors Preview/ 3pm – 8pm
Public Show Days:
Wednesday, October 18/ 11am – 7pm
Thursday, October 19/ 11am – 7pm
Friday, October 20/ 11am – 7pm
Saturday, October 21/ 11am – 7pm
Sunday, October 22/ 11am – 4pm
